Stumped
by DangoLovesYou
Summary: Nezumi shows up at Karan's new bakery when a new city is built on No. 6, and meets Shion's mother for the first time. Well, she's not as easy to talk to as Shion, that's for sure. Return-fic. Yeah, I don't know what this is either...
1. Chapter 1

Nezumi didn't often find himself stumped. He just didn't. He was an actress, after all, and he was quick, and that allowed him out of most difficult situations. But then, he didn't often find himself in difficult situations to begin with. Nezumi anticipated and planned, and that kept him out of too much trouble.

And Nezumi had anticipated this. Really, he had. And planned for it. For an entire month he thought of the best ways to handle this moment. But now he's _here_, and it's all so _real_, and he's forgotten all of that thinking and _shit, shit shit! What the hell am I supposed to do now?_

He's completely and utterly _stumped. _

Now, Nezumi's pacing under the deep blue awning that shields him from a gently falling snow. He's trying desperately to rethink a month's thoughts as quickly as he can, because the bakery's closing soon and people keep coming and going and he's just standing there, so he looks as stupid as he feels. _Dammit, I know I planned something! _

Silently, bitterly, Nezumi curses Shion and that mother of his for making him as nervous as a school girl watching her crush across the playground.

But he can't just wander in and act like a customer; he looks like shit after it forgot to take its antidepressants. And what then? He has no money, no plan, and no guarantee Shion will recognize him.

He can't walk up to this Karan woman and claim to be a friend of his. Shion must be making friends around wherever he's ended up (probably some giant grey building full of cubicles and endless hours of bureaucracy), and people from such a place would not look like they'd been sleeping in alleyways, gutters, and abandoned buildings as Nezumi had been for 33 days. Maybe 34, he'd lost track during that long storm a couple of weeks back.

What other excuses were there? Electrician? Still the wrong look. Traveling host? _Hey, that might just-_

"Good evening." A voice is saying suddenly, startling Nezumi from the mediocre script he's writing in his head. A woman in an apron is standing beneath a dark green door frame, with a kind yet frustratingly unreadable expression. That sweet smile is shallow, but what she's thinking behind it, Nezumi has no idea whatsoever. "Is there some way in which I may assist you?"

Nezumi stares back at her dumbly for a few seconds before dumping his script and acting on tried and true impulses. With something along the lines of a grin, he begins, "What a fine evening it is, flawless even, now that I am blessed with your presence." _Shit, wrong impulse. _

Karan raises her thin eyebrows, surprised but not off-guard, impressing Nezumi entirely. "Why, thank you. Why don't you come in for some coffee?"

"If I may be so bold."

Her smile widens, eyes shining with _something, _and Nezumi follows her in. A muffin and a mug are in his hands before he has the chance to take in shelves and shelves of delicious-smelling pastries, or the fireplace and surrounding seating in the back corner. He thanks her (unnecessarily elegantly, of course), and mills about, trying to take better control of the situation. He's failing miserably, and ends up sitting on a comfortable leather couch.

There's still a decent amount of activity in the shop, but Karan finds a free moment to sit in a chair next to Nezumi. "Hey there, Charmer," she starts, setting her own mug of coffee on the edge of the fireplace, allowing the flames to flick about and warm it. "I haven't seen you in my shop before."

"I'm new in town," Nezumi says quietly, dumping all of his acts and deciding to just speak carefully and let the conversation flow as it will.

"I thought as much."

There's this horrid silence, and Nezumi takes a sip of his drink as an excuse for not saying anything. He doesn't like that he doesn't know what to say. It was so much easier to talk to Shion than to Karan, and he was certain he hadn't anticipated that. In fact, he can't remember having such a difficulty with anyone. _You're nervous because you want Shion's mommy's approval. _That annoying, deadpan subconscious of his isn't helping.

"I love the cold," Karan went on to say, reaching out and warming her hands in the glow of the fire. "Don't you?"

"Not particularly." It wasn't a lie. Winters were always hard on Nezumi, considering he usually lacked a proper heating system, wood to make his own fire, or enough clothing to layer and keep him warm. Cold meant snow, and snow kept people from attending his plays, so he only got a fraction of his pay. He couldn't even catch a wild animal as he had, occasionally, in the summer, because of the hibernation patterns. But, he couldn't stand to hate the season anymore. Not when the thought of it brought about memories of icy white hair and quiet nights of reading together and the warmth created by being close to another living human. So, overall, Nezumi figures, and for the sake of context, 'not particularly' is appropriate.

"Hm, really? I figured you would. Why else would you pace outside of my shop for so long in this weather?"

Nezumi nearly spits coffee out and all over the cherry-stained end table he's facing as he stares out a window. Luckily, some amount of his composure is still in tact, so he swallows like a normal person. "A good question," he replies, even more quietly than before.

That awful glint is still in Karan's eyes as she goes on to some not-so-random small talk. "Say, I have a son about your age."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah. His name's Shion, and he works over in the government office. He was one of the founders of Renaissance."

Nezumi prays that she can't see the heat he feels in his cheeks as he hears Shion's name. "You must be proud."

"Yep. At least, it's not No. 6."

Now Nezumi knows what that goddamn gleam is. She know exactly who he is. Why they're going through this back and forth, pretending they're just casual strangers, he doesn't know. But it seems important to her, so he continues. "I suppose it isn't. But as I said, I'm not from this area, even when it was No. 6, not Renaissance."

"Oh, I see. Let me guess, a rogue?"

"Rogue? I've never put it quite like that, but I suppose it's accurate enough."

Another silence. She's preparing for something, and they both knew it.

"So, Charmer, where are you staying now?"

"Here and there. I just got into this city."

"Well, you're welcome to stay here, if you'd like."

There it was. _Did we have to go through all that? _"Wouldn't Shion mind?"

"He's stayed with rogues before. He didn't mind it too much." Nezumi smirks. It was all done now, the invitation was given and accepted. Karan rises. "Excuse me, but it's about time I close up the shop for the evening."

She does, and Nezumi plays admiringly with the logs of the fire a moment and cleans up a little with her. He smiles as he wonders when Shion will be home. He's been wanting to wonder that for 2 years since that wall fell.

As darkness envelopes Shion's new city, Karan and Nezumi talk and smirk and laugh together, and Nezumi decides he wouldn't mind it if this woman stumps him once in a while.

* * *

A/N- Just a little relationship exploration. I needed a break from Corrupted (among other things).

For the record, this is COMPLETELY UNRELATED TO CORRUPTED. Yeah, they have nothing to do with each other whatsoever.

Sorry if it sucks, and if it's full of errors. I've gone back and edited it since it was first published, but I miss stuff, I know.

Oh, right, disclaimers. I look forward to the day I wake up and realize I'm Asano-sensei. However, that day was not today.

Hope you enjoyed the Nezumi!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N- I know it was only going to be a one-shot, but it was so much fun, and there were scenes I didn't get to include. So now it's a (hopefully **[edit-not really at all in the case of this chapter]**) cute, fluffy, rarely updated series of bits of Nezumi! Oh yeah, and Shion, and Karan... Enjoy!

Disclaimer:|:remialcsiD

* * *

Nezumi finds it odd that Karan is able to talk while walking up a staircase, but supposes is makes sense. She isn't in the habit of listening for intruders around every corner and behind every door. Somewhere in his mind he knows that he's safe now, but he's still only comfortable nodding the entire climb.

"Welcome home," Karan says when fingers a blue button beside the door and the lights of the residence floor flip on. Not 'Welcome to _my_home,' like he's expecting. Just 'Welcome home.' Nezumi glances at Karan, trying his best to keep his face unreadable, but he's sure she can read his frustration at the fact that she's succeeding the the same task.

With a small mental scowl, he tries to take a step into the charming home he's ignoring for the moment, but a surprisingly strong stops him. With something close to a smirk (_Damn it, how can Shion's mother SMIRK?), _Karan stands herself in front of Nezumi, crosses her arms, and says, "Disarm."

_What?_

She's laughing at the look on his face he subconsciously knows he has, but Nezumi's too busy trying to oil the gears in his brain to care. "I beg your pardon?" He says deftly.

"You probably don't have any guns, but I can spot at least two knives. Please don't bring them home." There she goes with that word again, and a casual certainty that makes Nezumi think he's going to lose it.

He makes sure not to, though. He's only just gotten here, and he hasn't even gotten to see the reason he came back yet. He needs to get a hold on himself, and he can't let his guard down. Who knows what this woman is going to do next. "Okay, I'll wait for Shion outside," he decides as he says it. He hasn't let his weapons leave his side in, oh, twelve years or so. No way is he starting now.

"Oh, didn't I tell you? He'll be at the office for a few more hours. You can't wait there, or you'll catch a cold. I won't allow it, and Shion would be mad at you." Karan's face is still a cat's grin, but somehow it gives off this almost Shion-like innocence and sweetness. Nezumi gets dizzy at the sight, but his mouth is experienced and continues in a purely Nezumi fashion.

"What, afraid I'll use them?" _Good god I have to work on my impulses. _

"If you're going to be here, you have to obey the ground rules. You have no reason for knives in this household, aside from the ones in the kitchen."

"What about my own peace of mind?"

All traces of smirk were gone from Karan's expression now. Her words were enough to contradict the raspberry-sweet smile. "Well, you're not at ease now and you have them."

"I'm curious as to how you'll tell your son that I came back but you wouldn't let me in."

"I'll hint that you chose knives over him."

Nezumi will have to get better at dealing with this woman, fast. For now, however, he takes out three pocket knives and a letter opener and throws them into a basket Karan motions to next to the door.

As he does, Shion's mother mutters "stay here," and disappears down a hallway.

She returns with her hands balled around something. A rat.

"I figure he must be an old friend of yours, ne?" She asks, setting him on Nezumi's shoulder and petting him with one finger.

He murmurs a confirmation and looks the robot in those little, beady eyes.

When Nezumi turns back up, Karan has walked into a medium sized, sleek kitchen. The whole building is pretty extravagant, vaguely reminding Nezumi of that fateful September day six years ago. The scar on his arm tingles at the mental image.

Nezumi takes off his shoes and jacket, making himself at home as best he can in such a luxurious place, so not very well at all. "Your bakery gets a lot of business?"

"My son is a politician," she corrects from the fridge as Nezumi sits on a black leather couch that matches the rug in color.

Nezumi scoffs so he doesn't barf at the thought. "Politician? When I met Shion, he couldn't advocate for a cheap whore to get off of his face."

"You taught him how to make things he wanted a reality. He's learned a lot from you," Karan says quietly. She brings a bowl of stew to the four chair dining room table and sits down to the side of it. "Would you like some warm stew? I made it earlier this afternoon."

More grateful than he'd care to admit, Nezumi rises and sits back down in front of the dish, letting the steam wash over he face. He pulls his long lead bangs out of his eyes and behind one ear before he mutters a "Thank you, Karan," and taking a slow sip. Suppressing a sigh of delight, he smiles and nibbles on colorful vegetables.

She just nods and watches as him slowly finishes his meal, the best meal he's had in two years since Shion made the same dish. When he sets his spoon into his bowl for the fourth time, Nezumi takes the time to ask, "Why are you staring at me?"

"He's been waiting for you," Karan is saying quietly, taking the cloth off her hair and smiling softly as she folded it. "For two years, Shion's been waiting for this."

"I know he has," Nezumi says nervously, because once again he doesn't know where this is all going as this woman throws his world around without warning or consent. She's not quite sad, more melancholy, and it drives him crazy how quickly her moods change. How Shion, lump of manipulable innocence, could come from someone so complex and unpredictable, Nezumi believes, is one of the great mysteries of the modern world.

"I don't know whether to be mad at you or not, for all that happened. He's gone through a lot since meeting you. Because of meeting you."

"Karan," he adds uncertainly, knowing he has nothing to say, but staying silent would be improper.

"I think... I think you make him happy. I've never seen you do anything good for the boy, but I guess you do. I mean, you smashed the potential he had as a kid, and then you left. And you destroyed the region of both homes he's ever known, and then you left. But he was sad to see you go both times, and I always know when he's dreamed about you, because he's depressed for a couple hours afterward. So I can only assume he's happy when you're around, and that he misses you because of that."

"He never told you specifically?" Nezumi asks, something closed to floored. _What is the word..._

"No. He's left a lot of the details of two years ago a bit fuzzy to me. I just know he was happy. Happier than he was before, and happier than he is now."

Nezumi's been eating as he listens. He's done now, and his stomach is tight out of nervousness anyway, so he declines Karan's (somewhat out of place in the poetic conversation) offer for more. He's still something, not quite confused, as he watches Karan clear his dish and silently set a blanket and pillow on the couch for him.

"He'll be happy you're back," She states to no one in particular and they stand there, for a minute or so, not knowing quite how to proceed. "Shion has the day off tomorrow, so that won't be a problem. Oh, I come through here, just for a second, early in the morning, to open the bakery, so I'm sorry if I wake you." Finally she's reminding Nezumi of Shion. She sticks out her arm uncertainly. "Well, sleep well for your first night home, Nezumi." Nezumi shakes her hand. _Can't go wrong with manners._

"You as well. Thank you for allowing me to stay." And then the lights are off and Nezumi's on this absurdly plush couch and he knows there's no way he's going to be able to sleep like this. He just has no control over anything, and it's all too easy and provided, except that _woman_, who's all too hard. But he's just so _exhausted _after a month of finding his was back, so as soon as Nezumi realizes that the word he's been trying to remember is, once again, stumped, he falls into a deep yet restless sleep.

* * *

A/N-Oops! Cute and fluffy didn't work out to well, I guess. I know what's coming next though, and it is cute and fluffy and funny, and it will be up soon (I promise)!

My goodness Karan is OOC. So, so much. Sorry about that, if it made this any less enjoyable. Look forward to the next one. It will actually be fun.

This is my goof-off fanfic, really just some scraps and thoughts with plot filler, so, for the time being, whether or not you review will not affect whether or not I update. However, I would appreciate any review you offer. **Criticize, or even flame if you want. **

Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

Nezumi must be waking up every hour thoughout this painfully long night. It's always there, the thought and will to remain asleep, but he can't bare it. He's made unnerved and uncomfortable by all this frickin'… _comfort. _He doesn't need his microfiber cloth for warmth nor cool for the first time that he can remember. If he wants food, he can just walk over, and there's a refrigerator full of it. This cream pillow he's resting on is softer than the cheeks of those children Shion was always bringing around, for crying out loud.

As much time as he spends awake, however, he manages to miss when Shion comes in. He's not even sure during which hour it is. He only realizes that Shion must have come in at some point when he sits up around sometime in the night and sees a messenger bag on the floor at the edge of the hallway. The gently glowing touch screen panel by the door reads just after 4 am, and Nezumi's gotten all the sleep he needs. At least, that's what he tells himself. Mostly he can't stand the thought lying there unproductively for another minute. Most of this floor is open enough to be self-explanatory, so there's not much to explore. For a moment, Nezumi misses that old piece of crap house they used to share, and the maze of bookshelves that gave him enough amusement to last more than a couple sleepless nights. It's just long enough to make him wonder if Shion and Karan have any physical books lying around.

Nezumi's sure if he picked up that data pad over there he could find some electronic book or something equally blasphemous, but he doesn't feel like killing himself today, so he doesn't even consider it and stands up to wander around in search. In the process, he awakens that little rat Karan and Shion've been saving, and it scurries up his arm onto a sturdy shoulder.

The hallway is, without any sort of shame or guise, very, very dull. There's this stupid little plate next to each door, labeling the space behind. Shion's. Karan's. Restroom. _Is it even a restroom if it's in your own damn home? _ Nezumi wonders bitterly, continuing on with a frown. Office. Storage. That's the last door of the hall, Storage. With a raised eyebrow, he quietly enters and feels around for a light button.

It's a small and crowded room, seemingly only full of flour and sugar. But there's a familiar scent, one that Nezumi knows isn't baking supplies, but can't put his finger on. Past two or three shelving units he finds some wooden bookcases. That's right, that smell is browned paper, some splashes of ink, and a thick layer of dust.

_Perfect_, he says with a grin, and begins browsing. Mostly they're books he's already read, and he gets the feeling Shion's been trying to duplicate his old library, but with a few extra here and a few missing there. The idea makes his heart all tingly and shit, so he picks up Shakespeare to distract himself. Doubting he'll ever be comfortable in that absurd room, Nezumi sits down with his back against the wall and thumbs through the drama as his robot rodent drifts back to sleep, curled into his neck.

It isn't long before early morning daylight is pouring over the page he's skimming, and someone's walking in the hallway. With a nice long stretch, Nezumi stands and leaves, finding Karan in the kitchen.

"Morning," he says, and he hates that he's speaking _hesitantly. _Like a _sissy. _Someone really should pound some sense into him.

"Ah, Good morning, Nezumi!" Karan says with a large smile as she sets a pan on the stove and goes to the fridge. "I'm thinking about what to make for breakfast. Would you like anything in particular?"

Breakfast? He hasn't had breakfast in two years. He eats when he has food, whatever food he has, not according to some schedule. What is it again that is customary for breakfast? Toast? Eggs? Wait, she's making him breakfast? What is he, a prisoner? Some pig she's trying to fatten up? Mind whirling, Nezumi just kind of stands there as she looks at him, eyebrows knitting in concern.

"Nezumi?"

"Oh, uh, no thank you. I'm not hungry." It's the first thing that comes to his lips, so he goes with it.

"Ah, I see. Well, if you change your mind while I'm working, you can help yourself. Or I'm sure Shion would make you something." She turns back to the refrigerator and glances through its contents before shutting it with a short sigh. "I forgot, I was supposed to go to the market last night. I'm going to head out, okay?"

"Of course."

"Er," she continues, and Nezumi feels a little better that he isn't the only one weirded out this whole situation. What is the protocol for when you're (temporarily, Nezumi prays) living with the family of a man who's life you changed (to put it simply) before disappearing for two years? There is no greeting card, no manual, and no way for Nezumi to not totally humiliate himself. At least she stopped kicking his brain in the ass on purpose."So, you can use shower in the bathroom off the hall, and Shion should be up pretty soon," Karan finishes quickly, slipping on her shoes and jacket. Nezumi wonders if she realizes she's still in her pajamas. He doesn't stop her, though.

With a couple nice and awkward parting words, Karan leaves and Nezumi is left in this empty room again. He can't help but feel apprehension, reminding himself once again of a schoolgirl, at the thought that Shion is finally one door away. Just one. It takes a great deal of composure not to just throw open the door and wake Shion right now. Not wanting to scare him off, though, Nezumi waits and takes a shower instead. When he gets out, he realizes he has no other clothes to put on. He used to have a couple of clothes that he kept in a bundle while he was on the road, but things happened. He had never cared before, because his shower water was always a bit brown and smelling nice would have made him stand out. Now, however, the thought of putting back on those rotten, torn rags is a bit unappealing. He stays under the flow of water, pondering what to do until he hears a door open and footsteps in the hallway.

"Good morning!" Shion is calling out. The familiar voice makes Nezumi's little pansy heart patter like a galopping friggin' unicorn. He makes a hasty decision and gets out, pulling on his old pants and leaving. Shion is standing at the end of the hallway, looking around like the confused little airhead he always was. But with ivory hair that is a couple inches longer. And arms that made him look a bit more like an adult. And, of course, the red on Nezumi's cheeks is from the temperature change. Hot shower, cold hallway and all that. Yep, definitely.

"Hello? Mom?" Shion's saying as Nezumi gets an idea and sneaks up quietly behind him. He can't help but smirk to himself as he pounces, pinning Shion's stomach to the floor and sitting on him.

Shion seems oddly calm. "What's going on? Who are you?"

Nezumi leans down and whispers, "Just a freeloader," as he draws a line over a vein in Shion's neck with a finger, just as he had six years before, when they were both only kids.

Shion is now smiling up at him, eyes bright. "Nezumi!" He flips beneath him and leans up, wrapping his arms around Nezumi's neck and pulling him into a long awaited kiss. No questions, thank god, and no hesitation exists. Nezumi is finally at home after two years, welcomed by flickering eyelids and tiny moans.

* * *

Ahh, I feel so much better. I HATED the previous version of this chapter. Hated it. It nicked away at my subconscious, how I was disgracing No. 6. But, by popular demand, I didn't delete this story, only rewrote it. So, there you go. Rewritten.

Thanks all of my reviewers who are supporting me in this story! I hope everyone enjoyed how it turned out!


	4. Chapter 4

Nezumi doesn't particularly want to stop making out with Shion, but now that his long lost love's mother is coming back up the stairs, he finds he doesn't have much of a choice. With a groan of protest to his own actions, Nezumi backs off and stands up, offering a hand so Shion can do the same. Without a word, Shion grabs some of his own clothes and shoves them into Nezumi's chest, and the bathroom door shuts just as the front one opens.

As Nezumi pulls on the dark green shirt he's been given, he hears Karan and her son exchange morning pleasantries. She doesn't suspect a thing. _There are those old abilities,_ he thinks with a cocky grin. He feels a small twinge of relief at being able to pull something on Karan. Not that she doesn't know they're a couple- Shion _must _have told her- but still. A little secrecy does a rat good.

When Nezumi reenters the kitchen, Shion and Karan are just finishing putting the groceries away. Before he knows what's happening, food is on the stove, the bakery is opening late for a day, and they're all sitting around the table in anticipation of breakfast. Karan is saying, "I'm so glad we got to spend the morning together after all," while giving Nezumi some sort of bizarre half-smile, half-death glare. _Why, woman?! _

"Yeah, me too," Begins Shion. He has something close to a composed smile, but his eyes just keep flickering between Nezumi and Karan. He's so clearly nervous about the three of them being together, Nezumi realizes, and this whole thing is completely awkward and no one wants to be there, no one is glad, so why are they there? Is this another of those sick situations Karan has cooked up, pointless scenarios that they have to play through to reach any sort of reasonable standing? Nezumi is beginning to wonder just how many he can endure before his sanity drips out his ears. Shion speaks again after a pause that's just too long, enough so that Nezumi's mind has wandered and has to be yanked back like an anchor to the deck. "So, you two met last night?"

Of all the things the bastard has to bring up.

"Yes, we did," Nezumi says, putting on a brave face (a charming plastic smile, to be exact) and checking to make sure his elbows are off the table like a good little boy. "Your mother is very…" _Shit! Where was I going with that? EVIL! DEVIOUS! NO WONDER THIS WOMAN HAD TO DO WITH THE FOUNDING OF NO. 6! IT ALL MAKES PERFECT SENSE! _"Welcoming." Yeah, that's a safe enough word. Good and objective, but complementary all the same. Well done, Nezumi. He gives credit to Shion making him feel the tiniest bit more comfortable. Even though he was the one who brought up last night to begin with, but that could be forgiven….

Now that creepy half-smile, half-I-will-destroy-you-with-my-mind-if-you-move-wrong expression has a pair of raised eyebrows, and the head holding it is nodding slowly. She appears to be absorbing the words, processing them, and determining an appropriate punishment. "Well, Nezumi is a lovely young gen-tle-man," she says, breaking down the syllables through gritted teeth. Maniac. Even Shion noticed that one, and gave her a confused look. A clock must be over her shoulder, because gratitude of mercy floods Shion's features and he stands quickly.

"Ah, sorry to run off before breakfast starts, but I almost forgot! I have to pick him up! It's already time!" Him?

Shion darts out of the room like there's a bomb on the freaking table. No explanation, barely a wave goodbye, and he's off. Who's this 'him'? Nezumi would be something along the lines of concerned, but he more imminently has to deal with Karan. He had thought they had finished all this crazy crap, but apparently not. So what else was there? What was this woman's problem, anyway? Now that Shion was gone, it was even harder for Nezumi to speak, as he was worried that those beloved impulses would falter once again. At least he had a little tact while in the presence of his most obliviously comforting lover.

Nezumi now decides to go the direct route. "Do you have some problem you'd like to share, Karan?" Sure, he could be more tactful. He could also be more violent.

Karan is poking him with a fork with her chocolate brown eyes as she says, "I'm just trying to decide if I trust you to spend time with my son, Charmer." Let the Shion Wars continue.

"You admitted to me yourself that he's happier with me around. There's no way you could kick me out now. He knows I'm here." To hell with it all. Nezumi puts on his condescending smirk, and he has fun doing it.

"Of course I want little more than Shion's happiness. But, his safety is one of the few things that I wouldn't trade away."

"I'm not dangerous to Shion. And what are you going to do, hold him here? He's a grown man, and he found himself a job. He could get another place if he wanted to. Might even get one with me. But can your bakery pay for this big house all by itself?"

"You know, I didn't think you were dangerous. Not even by the knives and torn clothes and disappearing. You were a citizen of West Block, and I understand that. What troubled me was how nervous you both were. And I don't know what you did while I was gone, but Shion's face was too red."

_Huh? She's almost as dense as her son. Make the connection. What do lovers do? _"Jeez, if the things that made you suspicious were harmful, I would have been killed years ago." Gross play-goers, always perving the place up. Sexual harassment was practically in Nezumi's acting contract.

"That's not very reassuring. You haven't been a parent, Nezumi. I assume," Karan said, giving him a meaningful glare. He scoffed, so she went on, "so you don't know what it is to want to protect your child. You already took away Shion once for a few weeks, and he barely made it out alive. After what I've seen today, it's my place to be wary."

"I'm not going to say I won't give Shion a little taste of hardship. I have already. But I will never turn inhuman. I will always have more morals than No. 6, and you allowed him to live there."

Karan had smiled slightly, probably growing a bit more convinced. "Hm."

And of course, it was another of those expectant things, wasn't it? Fine, Nezumi plays along. "Karan," he says, trying not to grimace it his own corniness, "may I have your blessing to be with Shion?" Yick, what was he, marrying the kid? And anyway, it's Shion's decision. But at least now it's done.

So why does Karan look like he's growing a second head? She stutters, "Wait, you mean, like, to be _with _him? I had no idea that you two… that he…"

And now, it really doesn't matter if they have Karan's blessing, because Nezumi is going to kill Shion.

"He didn't tell you?!"

"No! I mean, I always had my suspicions—,"

"Suspicious again? No wonder Shion asks so many freaking questions! This stuff runs in the family."

"But I never figured that you and him, that, that you…!"

They're both standing now, and they're just spouting confused nonsense for a minute or so, until Karan's words just stop, giving Nezumi time to say, "Karan, your son Shion is gay, okay?"

Then they both start up again. "Of course! It's fine! It's just been two years, I thought he would have said something!"

"I can't believe, of all the things that guy does! How could he not tell you, he's a total mommy's boy!"

Nezumi and Karan are both snapped back into the real world and out of this shocking revelation when smoke blurs the air. The food that was on the stove is burning, and Karan is rushing over to stop it before the alarms start to sound. She doesn't make it in time, and somehow the eggs manage to catch on fire, somewhere between the yelling and fanning and movement of the pan. She lets out a high pitched yelp as Nezumi makes some unnecessary remarks about technology and how useless it is.

Nezumi ends up taking the pan from Karan, burning his hand and dropping it to the ground. As he's stomping on the flaming eggs, Karan is trying and failing to turn off her own stove, because she's a baker, so it's not like she uses her kitchen every day. A charming little feature of the house, a sprinkler system, activates to add the chaos.

So, what better time for Shion to walk in, holding something large and wrapped in a blanket?

He's shouting at his mother and Nezumi, setting the thing down to run to the kitchen to help, but stops in the thick, smoky air when a fourth voice adds to the fray. This one is loud and whiny and annoying as all hell. Nezumi finds himself shouting to anyone who will answer, "GOD DAMN IT, IS THAT A KID?!" It is, in fact, and the blanket falls as a boy toddles quickly to Shion's legs. The four voices don't stop until Nezumi has stomped out the fire, the water puts out the stove, and Shion has messed with the panel by the door until all the alarms and sprinklers have stopped. The three adults are left silent and stupid as the kid continues to scream and the smoke starts clearing.

Shion picks him back up, bouncing him lightly and whispering gently. "It's okay, there, Akira," he cooes, and the weeping ball of flesh slowly stops.

"So… It's a kid." Nezumi says slowly, his brain deciding to abandon him for the moment.

"Yeah! Nezumi, this is Akira! We saved him during the manhunt, remember?" Shion says, elated.

"It's… It's a kid."

"Yeah, Charmer, it's a kid," Karan _says_ from behind him. "You know what, if you can handle it, you have my blessing. You deserve it."

_Wait, what the hell did I do to deserve this? I've been here 10 hours! _Nezumi can't do anything but stand there, powerless and, yes, stumped, as he becomes part of a new family.

~Owari~

* * *

A/N~ Well, I'm glad that's over. My apologies for the weird last couple of sentences. Still, I hope you enjoyed it! Now would you mind telling me what it was and why I wrote it? I'm kind of at a loss... But, for everyone who wanted me to continue, well there you go. Satisfied? All warm and fuzzy inside? Good.

Now, back to the hard stuff. No, I haven't forgotten about Corrupted. But you try writing that. It's hard, especially since I'm a busy person, yet I decided it should be _realistic, _so I should do _research _on it and put forth _effort. _K, rant over, thanks for listening.


End file.
